The Win Group

05/07/2026

Geopolitical analysis isn’t just for large corporations, governments,
militaries or international organizations.

The Middle East conflict has exposed a critical vulnerability in American agriculture. About one-third of global seaborne fertilizer trade normally passes through the Strait of Hormuz, and the Gulf region exports nearly half the world’s urea and 30% of its ammonia. When geopolitical tension threatens this chokepoint, American farmers pay the price almost immediately.

Natural gas, the primary feedstock for nitrogen fertilizer production, saw a 20% drop in output. Prices spiked as much as 70% in some global regions. U.S. fertilizer costs alone jumped approximately 40% in the first month after the conflict began. The timing proved catastrophic. The war started precisely when American farmers were beginning spring planting, with fertilizer supply at roughly 75% of normal levels by mid-March.

For growers in the Corn Belt facing the worst of these pressures, the choices became brutal. Apply less fertilizer and reduce yields. Switch to soybeans, which require fewer inputs. Plant fewer acres entirely. Each decision carries cascading consequences. Less corn means less livestock feed, less ethanol production, and less raw material for hundreds of other products.

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05/04/2026

You have to analyze and learn from the past before you can predict and shape the future!!!!!

Its what we do every single day!!!

"For it is the doom of man that he shall forget the lesson of the past".

05/01/2026

We have studied it and modeled solutions to fix it!!! Call now!!!!

Federal debt now tops 100% of gross domestic product, a potent symbol of the gathering fiscal stresses on the U.S. that have been building for decades. It's on the way toward breaking the record set in the wake of World War II.

As of March 31, the country’s publicly held debt was $31.265 trillion, while GDP over the preceding year was $31.216 trillion, according to data released Thursday. That puts the ratio at 100.2%, compared with 99.5% when the last fiscal year ended Sept. 30.

That figure will likely climb for the foreseeable future because the federal government is running historically large annual deficits of nearly 6% of GDP, which add to the debt.

The government is spending $1.33 for every dollar it collects in revenue, and the budget deficit this year is projected at $1.9 trillion.

04/26/2026

The consequences were predicted far in advance of the legislation's passage.

A new working paper from the University of California, Santa Cruz, is raising fresh questions about the impact of California’s $20 minimum wage for fast‑food workers — and prompting a sharp rebuttal from Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office.

The study, released late last year, suggests the landmark wage hike may be producing unintended consequences across the state’s fast‑food industry, including reduced worker hours, higher menu prices and growing pressure on franchise owners to cut costs or automate jobs.

A new UC Santa Cruz study suggests California's $20 fast-food minimum wage leads to fewer hours and higher prices.

04/22/2026

How Industrial and Commercial Development and Job Creation Reduces Property Tax Pressure:

Nebraska relies heavily on property taxes to fund schools and local services like roads, police, fire and rescue and public amenities.

But when we attract commercial and industrial development:

• New payroll creates income tax revenue
• New residents create sales tax revenue
• New businesses create corporate tax revenue
• The tax burden is spread across more sources

That means:
Less reliance on property taxes
More affordable public services
Stronger long-term community stability

Economic development isn’t just about jobs —
it’s about fixing the tax imbalance.

Growth isn’t the problem, it’s the solution.

04/19/2026

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"We have to use new thoughts and new energies and new directions to step up," said Matt Williams, the state chamber's interim president. "The trajectory we are on right now is not going to be healthy for us in the long term."

Not long ago, Nebraska's growth was a national cover story.

04/13/2026

Fortunately, our clients knew the results of this election in Hungary months before the election, which gave them a huge strategic advantage over their competitors. Its what we do!!!!!!

BUDAPEST, April 13 (Reuters) - Hungary's opposition leader Peter Magyar, whose party won elections on Sunday with a landslide, said on Monday that his government would not support Ukraine's fast-track entry to the European Union. Magyar told a briefing that the issue of Ukraine's membership would ha...

04/09/2026

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04/09/2026

It’s important to understand the fragile state of the fertilizer market that existed before the start of the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran.

In 2022, after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the U.S., Europe and their allies sanctioned Russian gas, the main raw material for nitrogen fertilizer production. Later, they imposed sanctions against Russia’s ally Belarus, an important supplier of potash fertilizers. Together, the limits on these two key fertilizer producers caused a significant price shock – much greater than is currently being observed. With time, markets adjusted and prices stabilized, but at a higher level than before the war.

Therefore, when the U.S. and Israel began bombing Iran on Feb. 28, the fertilizer market was already operating with an unusually weak buffer. With supplies tightening, Russian and Chinese fertilizer producers can fetch higher profits from exports. However, both countries are entering the sowing season for their main grains. To ensure that their own farmers do not face shortages, Moscow and Beijing thus have both imposed export controls: Russia tightened restrictions on exports of ammonium nitrate, while China suspended exports of urea, diammonium phosphate and nitrogen-potassium fertilizer mixtures. The moves will help keep their domestic markets stable but will also put even greater pressure on international supply, exacerbating price increases. - Ekaterina Zolotova

04/09/2026

ECONOMIC REPORTS for January now available Cass County's net taxable retail sales were $10.7 million to start off the year, a 1.7% decrease from January 2025, according to the Nebraska Department of Revenue. In the City of Plattsmouth, taxable sales totaled $5.93 million, a 6.1% increase from the same month the year before. 10

(In December, Cass County was down 4.8% and Plattsmouth was up 10.2%.)

Statewide, Nebraska's January taxable sales totaled $3.47 billion, up 5.3%

from January 2025. +19.1%, Sarpy +1.3%. Neighboring counties (January comparison): Otoe -1.6%, Lancaster +3.3%,

Nearby cities: Ashland +21.9%, Bellevue +4.0%, Nebraska City +1.7%, Papillion +1.6%, Springfield +20.9%, Syracuse -18.4%, Waverly +1.4%. Motor vehicle sales tax collections were down for Cass County year-over- year. The Department of Revenue report shows Cass County's 5.5% tax
collections in January 2026 totaled $493,034, down from $500,250 in January 2025. The net taxable value value of of motor vehicle sales were $8.96 million, a 1.5% decrease from the previous year. Statewide, motor vehicle sales tax collections were down 5.7% compared to January 2025.

04/03/2026

Zelenskyy said on Friday that the front-line situation is the best it has been in 10 months. “The offensive they were planning for March was thwarted ⁠by the actions of our armed forces,” he said. “That is why the Russians will now simply step up their assault operations.”